Cast & creator
Leni Riefenstahl
Best known for aspekte, Je später der Abend, Das ist Ihr Leben
Helene Bertha Amalie "Leni" Riefenstahl (22 August 1902 – 8 September 2003) was a German film director, actress and dancer widely noted for her aesthetics and innovations as a filmmaker. Her most famous film was Triumph des Willens (Triumph of the Will), made at the 1934 Nuremberg congress of the Nazi Party. Riefenstahl's prominence in the Third Reich along with her personal friendship with Adolf Hitler thwarted her film career following Germany's defeat in World War II, after which she was arrested but released without any charges. Triumph of the Will gave Riefenstahl instant and lasting international fame, as well as infamy. Although she directed only eight films, just two of which received significant coverage outside of Germany, Riefenstahl was widely known all her life. The propaganda value of her films made during the 1930s repels most modern commentators but many film histories cite the aesthetics as outstanding. The Economist wrote that Triumph of the Will "sealed her reputation as the greatest female filmmaker of the 20th century". In the 1970s Riefenstahl published her still photography of the Nuba tribes in Sudan in several books such as The Last of the Nuba. She was active up until her death and also published marine life stills and released the marine-based film Impressionen unter Wasser in 2002. After her death, the Associated Press described Riefenstahl as an "acclaimed pioneer of film and photographic techniques". Der Tagesspiegel newspaper in Berlin noted, "Leni Riefenstahl conquered new ground in the cinema". The BBC said her documentaries "were hailed as groundbreaking film-making, pioneering techniques involving cranes, tracking rails, and many cameras working at the same time". Description above from the Wikipedia article Leni Riefenstahl, licensed under CC-BY-SA, full list of contributors on Wikipedia.
68
film credits
5
television credits
42
1925–2025 · acting roles
6.9
average across scored titles
Signature credits
Known for
Across film & television
Filmography (73)
Showing 73 of 73 credits
aspekte
Self
1965Je später der Abend
Self
1973Das ist Ihr Leben
Self
1976
Triumph of the Will
Director
1935Triumph of the Will
Producer
1935Triumph of the Will
Screenplay
1935Triumph of the Will
Editor
1935
Riefenstahl
Self (archive footage)
2024
Olympia Part One: Festival of the Nations
Nude Dancer - Prologue (uncredited)
1938Olympia Part One: Festival of the Nations
Director
1938Olympia Part One: Festival of the Nations
Producer
1938Olympia Part One: Festival of the Nations
Editor
1938Olympia Part One: Festival of the Nations
Writer
1938
The White Hell of Pitz Palu
Maria Maioni
1929
Churchill and the Movie Mogul
Self (archive footage)
2019
Olympia Part Two: Festival of Beauty
Director
1938Olympia Part Two: Festival of Beauty
Producer
1938Olympia Part Two: Festival of Beauty
Editor
1938Olympia Part Two: Festival of Beauty
Writer
1938
Faszination Bergfilm - Himmelhoch und Abgrundtief
Self (archive footage)
2008
Birth of a Nation
Self
1997
Storm Over Mont Blanc
Hella Armstrong
1930LENI
Self (archive footage)
2015
Games of the XXI Olympiad
Self - Spectator
1977
The Blue Light
Junta
1932The Blue Light
Director
1932The Blue Light
Story
1932The Blue Light
Producer
1932The Blue Light
Editor
1932
The Goebbels Experiment
Self (archival footage)
2005
Leni Riefenstahl - The End of a Myth
Self (archive footage)
2020
Day of Freedom
Producer
1935Day of Freedom
Editor
1935Day of Freedom
Director
1935Biographies
Self
1978
Ways to Strength and Beauty
1925
The Victory of Faith
Director
1933The Victory of Faith
Writer
1933The Victory of Faith
Editor
1933
The Holy Mountain
Diotima
1926The Holy Mountain
Director
1926
S.O.S. Iceberg
Ellen Lawrence
1933
Hitler's Hollywood
Self - Filmmaker (archive footage)
2017
Das Schicksal derer von Habsburg
Maria Vetsera
1928
The Night of the Filmmakers
Self
1995Memories of Berlin: The Twilight of Weimar Culture
Self - Interviewee
1976
FASCISM(s): A Film in Six Parts
Self (archive footage)
2025
The Wonderful Horrible Life of Leni Riefenstahl
Herself
1993
Hoch der Lambeth Valk
Idea
1941
S.O.S. Iceberg
Hella Lorenz
1933
Buffa racconta Jesse Owens
2017
Les Champions d'Hitler
Self
2016Speer und er: Nachspiel - Die Täuschung
Herself
2005Eiskalte Leidenschaft - Leni Riefenstahl und Arnold Fanck zwischen Hitler und Hollywood
Self (archive footage)
2018The Run
2016
Leni Riefenstahl: Her Dream of Africa
Self
2003
City of Toys
Self (archive footage)
2024
The White Ecstasy
Leni
1931
The Great Leap
Gita
1927In the Service of the Regime. Leni Riefenstahl
Self (archive footage)
2009
Longing For Innocence
Director
2023Memories of a Summer in Berlin
herself
1972
From Stag Beetle to Swastika
2002
Time of Darkness and Silence
Self
1982The Immoderation of Me - Sandra Maischberger meets Leni Riefenstahl
Self
2002
Underwater Impressions
2002Underwater Impressions
Director
2002Underwater Impressions
Writer
2002
Lowlands
Martha
1954Lowlands
Director
1954Lowlands
Producer
1954Lowlands
Screenplay
1954Lowlands
Editor
1954